McNAUGHT GENEALOGY

The McNaught surname arose in the Kirkcudbright and Dumfries shires in the part of southwest Scotland known as Galloway by dropping the last syllable from the McNaughtan or McNaughton name. The original clan was from Argyll and Perthshire, but after their appearance in Galloway as far back as the thirteenth century, and more or less continuously since then, various branches of the family came eventually to prefer the shorter version of their name. The earliest seat of the family seems to have been Kilquhanity on the Water of Urr west of Dumfries followed by the estates of Dundeugh, Dalwhairn and Dalwhat. The main line died out when the last male heir, John, died in 1738. But, of course, over the years innumerable younger sons spread out from that area and settled wherever they could find a living elsewhere in Scotland.

About ten years ago I began my search for our McNaught ancestry by examining the parish registers of Stevenston, Ayrshire, Scotland. I had previously found the birth record of our immigrant ancestor Hamilton Brown in that town, and hoped that the ancestry of his mother, Mary McNaught, would also show up in those records. I indeed had little difficulty in finding that she was born in 1771 in Stevenston as the eldest child of James McNaught and Margaret King.

The earliest record of a McNaught in these Stevenston Parochial Registers, the marriage of our James in 1770, occurred well after the beginning of the parish records in 1700. Thus we can infer that the appearance of McNaught there was part of the continual expansion of the family from their original homeland to the southeast. Before that, there is a record of a James McNaught who married Agness McAdam 2 Nov. 1722 in Dalmellington, a town some twenty five miles southeast of Stevenston McAdams History. But no connection has as yet been established with the Stevenston line.

At that time I also found another James McNaught and wife Elizabeth Walker in Stevenston who appeared to be contemporaries of our James and Margaret. Then I was contacted in 2007 by a Scottish cousin who suggested that the two James McNaughts were in fact the same man. A thorough analysis and discussion between us then resulted in the conclusion that James had indeed married a second time, and the chlldren he had with Elizabeth were half-siblings to our Mary.

The McNaught families recorded here have for the most part been taken from the Stevenston Parochial Registers, but the connections between generations are based primarily on my assumptions taking into account the ages at birth and marriage. That is, the children of parents are recorded, but those children are inferred as being the same individuals as the parents of the next generation. These are reasonably likely to be correct, but it should be emphasized that few records substantiating three generation connections are available. Where there is any doubt in my mind, a detailed discussion of the possibilities is given.

On 4 Oct 2002 I received a very detailed and complete genealogy, "Descendants of James McNaught" from Margaret Scott, a cousin of ours who was raised in Stevenston and now lives in Saltcoats. She also is a descendant of Mary McNaught. Her access to local records added considerably to what I had been able to find from the parish registers. Margaret's many additions and corrections to this part of our family history are cited below as353.

In 2007 Iain Brown of Kilwinning, just a few miles from Stevenston, got in touch with me and we also exchanged detailed information on this lineage. Indeed, it was his insight that first led us to recognize James' second marriage. Iain is descended from Janet McNaught, daughter of our progenitor James McNaught by that second wife Elizabeth Walker, who married John Conn in 1810. I've cited his contributions here as88.

Finally (or at least most recently), Stephen Reid of Giffnock, Glasgow, Scotland, contacted me and we've exchanged correspondence on the McNaughts. He's descended from James and his first wife Margaret King by their daughter Margaret who married Peter Wilson in 1794. His contributions are cited as325.

I'm greatly indebted to all three of these cousins who have generously shared the results of their own research to significantly extend and improve this chapter on our McNaught ancestry.

James McNaught
was born 4 Aug 1745 in Greenhill, Ochiltree Parish, Ayrshire, Scotland and died 12 Dec 1816 in Stevenston, Ayrshire, Scotland.

James was married (1) to Margaret King 6 Jul 1770 in Stevenston.

Margaret King
was born 23 Dec 1750 in Stevenston and died 9 Mar 1791 in Stevenston.
She was the daughter of William and Elizabeth (____) King.

From the AyrshireRoots.com transcriptions of the Stevenston monumental inscriptions, we find

High Kirk JAMES McNAUGHT died 12-12-1816 aged 71

and thus born 1745. Margaret Scott writes that the monument is "on the left hand side as you enter the churchyard facing the main door" of High Kirk.

Their marriage record in the 1770 Stevenston Parochial Registers reads:

James McNight and Margt King both in this par give in their Names June 16th mar July 6th

The phrase "give in their names …" is an indication of the posting of banns, which in later years evolved to "gave in their names for proclamation of banns in order to marriage …".

All of the ten children of James and Margaret, born every two years (precisely), were recorded in the Stevenston Parochial Registers as children of James McNaught wright in Stevenston and Margt King. Only for Mary, the first, was the surname spelled McNight.

From these birth records of his children, we know that James worked as a wright. Iain Brown calls him a "wright (joiner)", and scotsfamil.com/occupations defines a Wright as a Joiner or Carpenter. His son William was also a wright in Stevenston.

James and Margaret lost four of their children while they were still infants. Children in a family who died young, as evidenced from their given name being reused as well as from explicit records, are herein marked with the symbol †. Between May 10th to Sep 16th, 1778, sixteen deaths due to the pox were recorded in Stevenston, about one per week, and their daughter Janet died of the pox during that time. The parish experienced about the same rate between October 1781 and July 1782, when son James died, and again between July and December 1797, just after Robert's death. That, however, was the beginning of the end of the scourge of small-pox, as the English physician Edward Jenner developed his cow-pox vaccine and made it available to the world.

As pointed out by Margaret Scott, James' parents should be James and Elizabeth, according to Scottish naming conventions, and Margaret's parents possibly William and Mary. I haven't identified James mother, and Margaret's was, instead, Elizabeth, but Margaret Scott points out that many factors enter into choosing baptismal names, so the conventions can be only a guide.

Also, James doesn't fit into the various McNaught families otherwise recorded in Stevenston. He must have been born 1775 or before, but no births are recorded in Stevenston or Ardrossan that could have been his. The closest in time in Ayrshire is the son born 18 Sep 1764 in Old Cumnock to James McKnight and Janet Creighton/Crichton. This submitted record claims that this James was one of triplet sons, but two of the three records do not give any source information at all.

Birth records for Elizabeth and Margaret are also not obvious. There was a baptism recorded 23 Sep 1759 in both Stevenston and Ardrossan parish records for an Elizabeth, daughter of Robert Walker and Agnes Kerr who also had a daughter Margaret baptised 12 Mar 1761 in Stevenston, but these daughters would have been in their thirties to fifties when the McNaught children were born.

Finally, James and Elizabeth's granddaughter Elizabeth Conn, daughter of Janet, is reported to have married an Alexander Brown in Kilwinning.

Margaret's birth appears in the Stevenston Parochial Registers for 1750:

Margt Dawt to Will. King Cooper in Steven born Decr 22th Bap 23th

This 6 Jul 1770 marriage record of Margaret King to James McNaught specifies that she lived in Stevenston Parish, and so the baptism of a daughter Margaret to William King in Stevenston 23 Dec 1750 most likely is hers. There were other Margaret Kings born in the previous decade elsewhere in Northern Ayrshire, but I feel fairly confident that William must be her father.

There are 95 records of a William King born between 1710 and 1730 in Ayrshire, Scotland (and more outside the shire) who could be the father of our Margaret King. However, no records of a birth in Stevenston have been found. The nearest geograhically is the William King baptised 21 Mar 1724 in Kilwinning, where our Gulliland and Whitefoord lineages resided, less than three miles from Stevenston. This William's parents were William King and Anne Ross, married 7 Jun 1723.

A William King was baptised 29 Jan 1726 in West Kilbride, about six miles north-west along the coast from Stevenston. That William's parents were William King and Janet Jonstone. A third possibility is William, son of William King (no mother recorded) born 2 Dec, baptised 4 Dec 1715 in Beith, which is about twelve miles inland from Stevenston.

Whether or not any of these three William, Jr.s is the father of our Margaret King is not established at the present time. All of their birth dates and locations are about right for someone having a daughter born in Stevenston in 1750.

Unfortunately, during the period of Margaret's birth, the minister of the church in Stevenston did not record the mothers' name in the baptismal registers. So we don't have the name of Margaret's mother to identify her siblings, and must rely only on the identification of William four times as a cooper, and lastly as a wright in 1757, to identify Margaret's siblings (cooper and wright both being woodworkers). There were other children born to a William King from 1758 on, but that man was identified as a mason, and so it's unlikely that he was Margaret's father.

James McNaught, who married Margaret, was also described as a wright at the births of their children. It's not inconceivable that James apprenticed to William, as it appears likely he was a newcomer to Stevenston, and that he then married his mentor's eldest daughter.

The ten children of James and Margaret (King) McNaught: Mary, Elizabeth, Margaret, Janet †, James †, William, James †, John, James and Thomas.

1

McNaught, Mary was born 8 Jun 1771.

2

McNaught, Elizabeth was born 29 Jul 1773 in Stevenston.
She and John Paton were married 10 Jun 1793 in Stevenston.

Elizabeth's birth record in the 1773 Stevenston Parochial Register:

Eliz. dau to James McNaught wright in Stevenston & Margt King bor July 29th Bap Do privately

and her marriage record in 1793:

John Paton in the parish of Dundonald and Elizabeth McNaught give in their Names May 31th June 10 marr.

Dundonald is the next parish south along the coast from Stevenston. No birth records for John or their children were found in the IGI.

3

McNaught, Margaret was born 15 Aug 1775 in Stevenston.
She and Peter Wilson were married 8 Aug 1794 in Stevenston, Ayrshire, Scotland.
Peter was born 5 Nov 1770 in Barony Parish, Lanarkshire, Scotland and died before 1851.
He was the son of David and Jean (Dick) Wilson.

Margaret's birth record in the 1775 Stevenston Parochial Register:

Margt dautt to James McNaught wright in Stevenston and Margt King bor Augt 15th Bap 20th

and her marriage in 1794:

Peter Wilson and Margaret McNaught both of this parish give in their names July 19th marr. August 8

This is the lineage of Stephen Reid of Glasgow, who provided the information on Peter, and the names of the children of this family and of many of their descendants325. He wrote that much of his information came from a Janet Brown on http://www.genesreunited.co.uk. However, his brother in Australia who had collected that information was unable to get a response when trying to contact her for source information. I thank him for generously sharing with me the results of his research on his line.

Wilson, James was born 22 Dec 1799 in Barony Parish.
He and Isabella Haddow were married 11 Jul 1824 in Barony Parish, Lanarkshire, Scotland.
Isabella was born 10 Oct 1791 in Douglas, Lanarkshire, Scotland and died 25 Feb 1879 in Lenzie, Kirkintilloch, Scotland.
She was the daughter of Robert and Elizabeth (Reid) Haddow.

Stephen Reid lists six children of James and Elizabeth, born 1825 through 1838., and descendants through many more generations.

iv

Wilson, Wiliam † was born 9 Apr 1802 in Barony Parish and died 1802.

v

Wilson, Wiliam was born 27 Dec 1803 in Barony Parish.

vi

Wilson, Marrion † was born 3 Mar 1806 in Barony Parish and died before 1816.

vii

Wilson, Alexander was born 1 Jul 1808 in Barony Parish.

viii

Wilson, Agnes was born 20 Oct 1810 in Barony Parish.

ix

Wilson, Peter was born 12 Jul 1813 in Barony Parish.

x

Wilson, Marrion was born 25 Aug 1816 in Barony Parish.

4

McNaught, Janet † was born 8 Aug 1777 in Stevenston, Ayrshire, Scotland and died 11 Jul 1778 in Stevenston.

Janet's birth record in the Stevenston Parochial Registers:

Janet Dau to James McNaught wright in Stev & Margt King br Augst 8th Bap Do

and ten months later on 11 June the next year:

Janet Dau to James McNaught wright in Stev. died June 11th pox.

5

McNaught, James † was born 26 Jun 1779 in Stevenston and died 12 Oct 1781 in Stevenston.

James' birth record in the 1779 Stevenston Parochial Registers:

James son to James McNaught wright in Stev & Margt King bor June 26 Bap 27th

Then, in 1781,

James son to James McNaught Wright in Stev. died Octr 12 pox

His was one of the first of 33 deaths in the parish in a nine month period due to small pox.

6

McNaught, William was born 27 May 1781 in Stevenston and died 20 Apr 1870 in Irvine, Ayrshire, Scotland.
He and Margaret Walker were married about 1801.
Margaret died 13 Nov 1869 in Ayrshire, Scotland.
She was the daughter of ____ and ____ (____) Walker.

William's birth record in the Stevenston Parochial Registers:

Willm son to James McNaught wright in Stev & Margt King bor May 27th.

That no baptism was entered for William in the register is probably simply an oversight, but the date cannot be inferred.

Margaret Scott's notes indicate that in the 1861 census William, 80 and a joiner, lived at approximately 28 School Well Street with his wife Margaret 82, daughter Agnes Fleming 47, muslin sewer, and grandaughter Margaret Fleming 22, a dress maker. She also reports that he sold his house to the Orr family for £45, apparently with the right to rent it for life for payments of £2353.

William died of "debility euribelas" at the Cunninghame Combination Poor House 20 Apr 1870 at the age of 90 [Scott, 2002]. Margaret had died just five months previously on 13 Nov 1869.

There is no marriage record around 1801 in the Stevenston Parochial Registers for William McNaught and Margaret Walker. However, there is a record for Elizabeth Walker and James McNaught. Their children were all born and baptised in Stevenston, Janet 1793, Robert 1795, Agnes 1797, Jane 1799 and Ann 1802. William McNaught and Margaret Walker's children were born from 1802 to 1818. I'm assuming that this Elizabeth Walker is sister to the Margaret Walker who married William McNaught, but she may have been an aunt, instead. James does not appear on the Rev. Landsborough's parish lists, but Eliz. Walker McNaught was listed as a widow living on Schoolwell Street in 1819, 1822 and 1837. The first two years she had her daughter Ann living with her.

Also, James doesn't fit into the various McNaught families otherwise recorded in Stevenston. He must have been born 1775 or before, but no births are recorded in Stevenston or Ardrossan that could have been his. The closest in time in Ayrshire is the son born 18 Sep 1764 in Old Cumnock to James McKnight and Janet Creighton/Crichton. One of the submitted record claims that this James was one of triplet sons, but two of the three IGI records do not give any source information at all.

Birth records for Elizabeth and Margaret are also not obvious. There was a baptism recorded 23 Sep 1759 in both Stevenston and Ardrossan parish records for an Elizabeth, daughter of Robert Walker and Agnes Kerr who also had a daughter Margaret baptised 12 Mar 1761 in Stevenston, but these daughters would have been in their thirties to fifties when the McNaught children were born. Margaret Walker and William McNaught had a son James who married an Agnes Kerr. Coincidence?

The eight children of William and Margaret (Walker) McNaught: James, Robert †, Margaret, Janet †, Robert, Agnes, William † and Janet.

i

McNaught, James was born 7 May 1802 in Stevenston, Ayrshire, Scotland and died 4 May 1835 in Stevenston.
He and Agnes Kerr were married about 1821.
She was the daughter of James and Ann (Reid) Kerr.

James' birth record in the Stevenston Parochial Registers:

James Son to William McNaught wright in Stevenson & Margaret Walker born 7th May Bap 9th.

Among the McNaught-Kerr families in Stevenston, there were two James McNaught and Agnes Kerr families whose childen need to be identified. The earlier couple was James, son of James McNaught and Margaret King, and Agnes, daughter of William Kerr and Janet Hunter. That earlier James, born 1787, and who I'll refer to as James (A), was uncle to this second James, born 1802, whom I'm denoting as James (B).

The four children of James and Agnes (Kerr) McNaught: Ann †, Margaret †, Ann and William †.

1

McNaught, Ann † was born 27 Aug 1822 in Stevenston and died 19 May 1826 in Stevenston.

I find that I recorded this Ann's birthdate as 27 Aug 1822, and her baptism as 20 Aug 1822. I don't know which is correct, but a guess might be that I mistyped what should have been a 30 Aug baptism, as that fits the pattern of the other children, each baptised a few days after their birth.

2

McNaught, Margaret † was born 15 Sep 1824 in Stevenston and died 17 May 1826 in Stevenston.

3

McNaught, Ann was born 9 Apr 1829 in Stevenston.

4

McNaught, William † was born 1833 in Stevenston and died 1833 in Stevenston.

ii

McNaught, Robert † was born 8 Feb 1804 in Stevenston and died 23 Sep 1805 in Stevenston.

Robert's birth record in the 1804 Stevenston Parochial Registers:

Robert Son to William McNaught wright in Stevenson & Margaret Walker was born Feb 8th and Bap 12

and the next year:

William McNaughts Child Died Septr 23

iii

McNaught, Margaret was born 22 Mar 1806 in Stevenston.

Margaret's birth record in the 1806 Stevenston Parochial Registers:

Margaret Daughter to William McNaught wright in Stevenson & Margaret Walker born March 22th May Bap 23.

This is one of two Margaret McNaughts who could have been the wife of William Kerr, born 23 Mar 1800, married 2 Aug 1834, and with daughter Ann Kerr born 31 Dec 1837, all in Stevenston. That other Margaret, daughter of John McNaught and Janet Auld, is more likely, as her sister married a John Kerr.

It is possible that this Margaret married John Gibson [IGI]. However, the ages are quite disparate, John being 15 years younger, so such a marriage is unlikely.

iv

McNaught, Janet † was born 14 May 1808 in Stevenston and died before 1818.

Janet's birth record in the Stevenston Parochial Registers:

Janet Daugt to William McNight wright in Stevenson & Margt Walker born May 14th Bap 15th.

v

McNaught, Robert was born 4 Jun 1810 in Stevenston.

Robert's birth record in the 1810 Stevenston Parochial Registers:

Robert Son to Wm McNaught wright in Stevenson & Margt Walker born June 4th Bap 6th.

See the note for Robert, son of John McNaught and Janet Auld, as to the marriage of a Robert McNaught to an Ann Miller.

vi

McNaught, Agnes was born 16 Jul 1813 in Stevenston.
She and Neil Fleming were married 29 Jan 1836 in Stevenston.

Agnes' birth and baptism is recorded in the Stevenston Parochial Register for 1813:

Neil Fleming, seaman in the parish of Ardrossan and Agnes McNight in this parish gave in their names for proclamation Jany 29th Married.

Also, in the Ardrossan Parochial Register:

Neil Fleming Sailor in this parish and Agnes McNaught in the Parish of Stevenston gave In their names for proclamation of banns this 30th day of January were ______ proclaimed and married by the Revd Landsborough.

A daughter of Neil and Agnes (McNaught) Fleming: Margaret.

1

Fleming, Margaret was born 1838/1839 in Stevenston.

Margaret's birth year comes from her age of 22 when she and her mother Agnes were censused living with her grandparents William and Margaret McNaught.

vii

McNaught, William † was born 14 Apr 1816 in Stevenston and died 15 Feb 1820 in Stevenston.

From the 1820 Stevenston Parochial Registers:

Wm son to Wm McNight Stevenston died Feby 15th.

viii

McNaught, Janet was born 5 Dec 1818 in Stevenston.

From the 1818 Stevenston Parochial Registers:

Janet daughtr to Wm NcNaught and Margt Walker Born Decr 5th Bap 13th.

7

McNaught, James † was born 6 Jul 1783 in Stevenston and died 1786 in Saltcoats, Ayrshire, Scotland.

James' birth record in the Stevenston Parochial Registers:

James son to James McNaught wright in Stev & Margt King bor July 6th Bap the Same Day.

and in 1786 (I failed to copy the month):

James son to James McNaught Wright in Stevenston died 27th.

8

McNaught, John was born 11 May 1785 in Stevenston, Ayrshire, Scotland and died 20 Jul 1857.
He and Janet Auld were married 14 Mar 1807 in Stevenston.

John's birth record in the 1785 Stevenston Parochial Registers:

John son to James McNaught wright in Stevenston and Margt King born May 11th Bap Do privately

and his marriage in 1807:

John McNight and Janet Auld both in this parish gave in their names March 14th.

From the Rev. Landsborough's lists, we find that John was a wright, like his father, living on School Well Street. However, at the baptism of his daughter Margaret in 1812 he was described as a joiner. For the other children's births he was noted as a wright, in accordance with the Landsborough list. In the 1819 list the living children were Janet, James, Margaret, Elizabeth and John; in 1822 there were six children in the family, and in 1837 three. All of the parish records of the births of his children spell his surname McNight, but Landsborough in his the 1819 list spelled it McNaught. His brother William in the parish records was also alternately McNight and McNaught.

The eleven children of John and Janet (Auld) McNaught: James †, Janet, James, Margaret, Elizabeth, Robert †, John, Agnes, Robert, Ann and Mary Innes.

i

McNaught, James † was born 13 Jul 1807 in Stevenston and died 28 Jan 1809 in Stevenston.

From the 1807 Stevenston Parochial Registers:

James son to John McNight Wright in Stevn & Jance Auld born July 13th Bapt Do 19th.

and in 1809

John Macnight's childe in Stevenston Died Jany 28th.

ii

McNaught, Janet was born 12 Sep 1808 in Stevenston.
She and John McClae / McLean were married after 9 Feb 1828 in Stevenston.

Janet's birth and baptism in 1808 appeared at the beginning of the 1809 Stevenston Parochial Registers as one of six records inserted there:

Her marriage record in 1828, where the end of the entry is unreadable:

Robt McClae in this parish of Irvine and Janet McNight in this parish gave in their names Feby 9 … .

The Arshireroots.com Genealogy database gives Janet's birth as about 1805, Robert's name as McClay, and lists the marriage as 10 Feb 1828 in Stevenston and Irvine. Robert McLean and Janet McNaught, with three children, were listed in 1837 by the Rev. Landsborough. (The IGI for Scotland does not equate the three surname spellings.)

iii

McNaught, James was born 31 Aug 1810 in Stevenston and died after 1874.
He and Margaret Ritchie were married 30 Sep 1831 in Stevenston.
Margaret was born 1805/1807.

From the 1810 "Stevenston Parochial Registers":

James son to John McNight Wright in Stevenston & Janet Auld Born Augt 31st Bap Sept 2d.

Then, in 1831:

James McNight and Margt Ritchie both in this parish Registered Sep 16th Mar 30th.

From the 1861 and 1871 census indexes, Margaret was born 1805/07, and they had a granddaughter Jean McNaught born 1853/54 living with them both years. James was a cotton weaver, and they lived on Schoolwell Street353.

"James McNaught of Stevenston was the town crier (of Saltcoats?). This well-worn account book is his record (about half in ink, half in pencil) of the events he cried, and how much he was paid, during the period 1863 to 1874. Many events were regular ones, such as colliers meetings, sales of goods, sales of meat, vegetables, fish etc, as well as unusual ones such as missing children, lost property, temperance meetings etc etc. These events plus misc payments received for odd jobs cover 31pp of this account book. Elsewhere in the book James recorded much family detail including his marriage to Margaret Ritchie in 1831, and births (and some infant deaths) of children. He also records "my father John McNaught got his thigh splintered by a fall on the frost on the 14 February 1838 and died on 20th July 1857. ... Elsewhere it is recorded that John Hammel had married Jean McNaught in 1875. ..." .

The seven children of James and Margaret (Ritchie) McNaught: John, Jean, James Ritchie, Janet, Margaret, Elizabeth and James.

1

McNaught, John was born 1 Feb 1835 in Stevenston.

2

McNaught, Jean was born 1834/1835 in Stevenston.
She and John Reid were married 1861 in Stevenston.
John was born 1838/1839.
He was the son of Alexander and Isabella (Robertson) Reid.

Although no birth was recorded for Jean, her marriage record clearly identifies her353 citing Linda Nordby citing Ken Reid:

"11/10/1861 wedding of John Reid of Stevenston, son aged 22 of Alexander Reid and Isabella Robertson, to Jean McNaught of Stevenston, daughter aged 26 of James Mcnaught and Margaret Ritchie."

I don't know which way dates in this format are to be read, so this might be 11 Oct or 10 Nov, 1861.

3

McNaught, James Ritchie was born 10 Dec 1837 in Stevenston.

James Ritchie was followed by James in this family, but I don't know whether or not that implies he died young.

4

McNaught, Janet was born 27 Apr 1840 in Stevenston.
She and Alexander Stevenson were married 10 Jun 1859 in Stevenston.
Alexander was born 1840.

Janet's husband and marriage date are from the Arshireroots.com Genealogy database.

5

McNaught, Margaret was born 21 Mar 1843 in Stevenston and died 1901 in Lonaconing, Allegany, Maryland.
She and James Allerdice were married 22 Aug 1863 in Stevenston, Ayrshire, Scotland.
He was the son of Thomas and Janet (Frew) Allerdice.

Margaret Scott has this information also, from Ruth, and lists six children Janet, Margaret, Agnes, Elizabeth, Agnes and Jemima Allerdice born 1863 through 1874.

6

McNaught, Elizabeth was born 27 Jun 1847 in Stevenston.

7

McNaught, James was born 3 Sep 1850 in Stevenston.

iv

McNaught, Margaret was born 20 Dec 1812 in Stevenston.
She and William Kerr were married 2 Aug 1834 in Stevenston.
William was born 23 Mar 1800 in Stevenston.
He was the son of James and Ann (Reid) Kerr.

This is one of two Margaret McNaughts who could have been the wife of William Kerr, the other being the one who married John Gibson in 1831. Since this Margaret's sister Elizabeth married John Kerr, she is somewhat more likely to be William Kerr's wife, and I have assumed that's so for now.

William Kerr in the parish of Kilmarnock and Margt McNight in this parish registered Augt 2d [SPR].

Magaret and William had several children, in addition to Ann, below, who are listed in the IGI, but I have not seen the primary source records.

A daughter of William and Margaret (McNaught) Kerr: Ann.

1

Kerr, Ann was born 31 Dec 1837 in Stevenston.

v

McNaught, Elizabeth was born 18 May 1815 in Stevenston.
She and John Kerr were married after 19 Dec 1840 in Stevenston.

From the 1815 Stevenston Parochial Regisgters:

Elizabeth Daught to James McNight wright in Stevenston & Janet uld born May 18th Bapd 21st.

where Janet's maiden name was clearly written uld. Elizabeth's marriage record in 1840:

John Kerr in West Parish Greenock & Elizabeth McNaught in this parish gave in their names for proclamation this 19th Decr mard.

John's parish, also known as Old Greenock Parish, is in Renfrewshire, about four miles south of the town of Greenock, and about 18 miles due north of Stevenston.

vi

McNaught, Robert † was born 20 Mar 1817 in Stevenston and died before Feb 1823.

From the 1817 Stevenston Parochial Registers:

Robert son to John McNight Wright in Stevenston and Janet Auld Born March 20th Bapd 23d.

vii

McNaught, John was born 20 Mar 1818 in Stevenston.
He and Isabella Niven were married 22 Oct 1844 in Stevenston.

From the 1818 Stevenston Parochial Registers:

John son to John McNight Wright in Stevenston and Janet Auld Born March 20th Bapd 22d.

John married a girl who was also of Sevenston, but their marriage took place clear on the other side of Scotland. From the 1844 Stevenston Parochial Registers:

John McNaught Mariner and Isabella Niven both in this parish gave in their names for proclamation of banns in Order to Marriage this 19th Oct and were Married Oct 22d at Dundee by the Rev. George Gilfillen.

Dundee, on the Firth of Tay, is in County Angus, or Forfarshire. We can well imagine that Isabella, although living in Stevenston, had her marriage performed back in her home town.

viii

McNaught, Agnes.

From the Stevenston Parochial Registers for 1822 we have a daughter Agnes baptised 1822, father John McNight [SCR]. I missed this when reading the film, so don't know what the birth date was, nor whether a blank space was left for the mother's name or it was just omitted altogether.

ix

McNaught, Robert was born 25 Feb 1823 in Stevenston.
He was married to Ann Miller.
Ann was born 1823/1824 in Ayrshire?, Scotland.

This baptismal month seems to have been the result of absent mindedness on the part of the minister, as previous and subsequent baptisms on that page were in the month of March. That, of course, is consistent with a birth at the end of February.

Robert McNight and Ann Miller both in this parish give in their names for proclamation July 29th.

The first five children in this family are from the 1861 Stevenston census and the last from a Poor Relief record, both forwarded to me by Linda A. Nordby [Personal communication, Oct 2002]. The large intervals among the last children may indicate that other siblings died young.

The Poor Relief Record, Stevenston 1866, reads:

"466 1866 Robert McNaught Fullerton Place Stevenston 29th June Tailor married above 40 partially disabled wife Ann Miller (in fever) 40 son John 20 collier lying with fever some days past Charles 19 Isabella 16 Applicant laid up with fever though better although weakly Wife at present ill for last days James 11yrs Janet 5yrs Alexander 2yrs Settlement Stevenston Relieved"

Not all of the ages agree exactly with the census record, but considering that both Robert and Ann were laid up with the fever, the numbers are remarkably good.

The six children of Robert and Ann (Miller) McNaught: John, Charles, Isabella, James, Janet and Alexander.

1

McNaught, John was born 1844/1845 in Stevenston?, Ayrshire, Scotland.

2

McNaught, Charles was born 1846/1847 in Stevenston?.

3

McNaught, Isabella was born 1848/1849 in Stevenston?.

4

McNaught, James was born 1854/1855 in Stevenston?.

5

McNaught, Janet was born 1859/1860 in Stevenston?.

6

McNaught, Alexander was born 1863/1864 in Stevenston?.

x

McNaught, Ann was born 23 Apr 1825 in Stevenston, Ayrshire, Scotland.

From the 1825 Stevenston Parochial Registers:

Ann daughter of John McNight Wright of Stevenston and Janet Auld born 23rd April Bapd 1 May.

xi

McNaught, Mary Innes was born 7 Aug 1827 in Stevenston.
She and James Lyle were married 2 Jul 1847 in Stevenston.

This daughter was one of the few in our Scottish heritage to have been baptised with two given names. From the Stevenston Parochial Registers for 1827:

James Lyle in the Low Church Parish of Kilmarnock and Mary Innes McNight in this Parish gave in their names for proclamation of banns in Order to Marriage the 12th day of June

9

McNaught, James was born 7 Jun 1787 in Stevenston.
He and Agnes Kerr were married about 1816.
She was the daughter of William and Janet (Hunter) Kerr.

James' birth record in the Stevenston Parochial Registers:

James son to James McNaught wright in Stev & Margt King born June 7th Bap 10th

There were two James McNaught and Agnes Kerr families in Stevenston, both of whom named children James and Ann. I am designating the husband of this present couple as James (A). The other, a nephew of this James, I've denoted as James (B). See McNaught-Kerr Families (new window) for a full discussion of these two families.

James born 1787 was a sailor living on Boglemart Street with his wife Agnes Kerr in 1819, and on Schoolwell Street (which intersects Boglemart) with her in 1822. The 1819 list of the Rev. Landsborough names children James and Ann, and the 1822 list indicates two children. The family did not appear on the 1837 list.

James McNaught
was born 4 Aug 1745 in Greenhill, Ochiltree Parish, Ayrshire, Scotland and died 12 Dec 1816 in Stevenston, Ayrshire, Scotland.

James was married (2) to Elizabeth Walker 25 Feb 1793 in Stevenston.

Elizabeth Walker
was born Sep 1759.
She was the daughter of ____ and ____ (____) Walker.

The 2007 suggestion of Iain Brown seems eminently correct, that there were in fact not two James McNaughts, wrights, in Stevenston in the 1790s. The "proof" is founded on the names and dates of the second family. The dates involved are as follows:

James and Margaret King married 1770. Their ten children were born every two years from 1771 through 1789. Margaret died in 1791. James and Elizabeth Walker were married Monday, 25 Feb 1793, and their first daughter Janet was born the next day, on the 26th. (Iain Brown confirms those two dates in the parish record, and as Margaret Scott writes -- that must have been an exciting two days!) Their remaining children were born in 1795, 97, 99 and 1802. James and Elizabeth named their first child, Janet, after a deceased child of Margaret, and the other three names do not match her surviving children. This also is evidence (although weak) that they were all children of one father.

Elizabeth and James McNaught's marriage is recorded in the Stevenston parish register, but many of the children's birth records are spelled McNight. I'm assuming for the time being that this Elizabeth Walker who married a James McNaught is the sister or aunt to Margaret Walker who married James' son William McNaught. William was living on School Well Street with all the other McNaughts, but James does not appear on the Rev. Landsborough's parish lists in 1819, 1822 and 1837 even though the birth and baptisms of all of their children appear in the parish register. This apparently indicates that the family left Stevenston before 1819.

"Eliz Walker McNaught" was listed by the Rev. Landsborough as a widow living on Schoolwell Street in 1819, 1822 and 1837. The first two years she had her daughter Ann living with her.

The five children of James and Elizabeth (Walker) McNaught: Janet, Robert †, Agnes, Jane and Ann.

1

McNaught, Janet was born 26 Feb 1793 in Stevenston and died 7 Jan 1869 in Stevenston.
She and John Conn were married 20 Apr 1810 in Stevenston, Ayr, Scotland.
John was born 1785.
He was the son of John and Mary (Paton) Conn.

According to the Rev. Landsborough, John was a wright living on School Well Street, and the children in this family in 1819 were Elizabeth, John, James, Mary and David. By 1822 there were four children still at home, and in 1837 there were seven persons in the household, including a Mary Conn.

The twelve Conn children in this family were taken from freepages.family.rootsweb.com/~howiefamily/84/39.htm.

Robert Conn b 10 Feb 1828 to John Conn and Janet McNaught in Stevenston, Ayrshire

An entry in the AyrshireRoots.com database says that daughter Elizabeth born 15 Jun 1823 married 17 Oct 1862 in Kilwinning an Alexander Brown born about 1810. (The same entry also says he married the sister Elizabeth born 30 Nov 1810 who died before 1823, but at least the record adds some question marks.) Who this Alexander is we don't know, and why the marriage would have been in Kilwinning is unknown. This same source gives the date of Janet's death in "Big Green Cottage, Schoolwell St.".'

The ancestry of John is online at the http://www.ayrshireroots.com/ Ayrshireroots Surname Database. He was a joiner by profession and lived on School Well Street, along with all of the McNaughts.

Iain Brown says John was born in 1785, so the date I have was probably a baptism.

The twelve children of John and Janet (McNaught) Conn: Elizabeth †, John, James †, James, David †, Mary, David, Elizabeth, William, Robert, Ann and Thomas.

i

Conn, Elizabeth † was born 30 Nov 1810 in Stevenston, Ayrshire, Scotland and died before 1823 in Stevenston.

The cited source say Elizabeth "probably" died before 1823.

ii

Conn, John was born 2 Aug 1812 in Stevenston and died 7 Jan 1874 in Quay Str., Saltcoats, Ayrshire, Scotland.
He was married to Elizabeth Fife.

The Arshireroots.com Genealogy database gives this son who did not appear in the cited source, and the four year gap otherwise supports that there was a child born about 1812.

iii

Conn, James † was born 3 Jul 1814 in Stevenston, Ayrshire, Scotland and died before 1815 in Stevenston.

iv

Conn, James was born 29 Jul 1815 in Stevenston.

v

Conn, David † was born 30 Aug 1817 in Stevenston and died before 1821 in Stevenston.

vi

Conn, Mary was born 9 Mar 1819 in Stevenston.

vii

Conn, David was born 29 May 1821 in Stevenston and died 1 Nov 1880.
He and Janet Bell Dick were married 23 Sep 1843 in Stevenston, Ayrshire, Scotland.
Janet Bell was born 1823 in Dundonald.

Conn, Robert was born 10 Feb 1828 in Stevenston and died 2 May 1873 in Castlemaine, Victoria, Australia.
He and Jane Howie were married 15 Dec 1849 in Stevenston.
Jane was born 19 Aug 1827 in Stevenston, Ayrshire, Scotland.

Robert and Jane had three children, John, Grace and Robert. A RootsWeb WorldConnect genealogy states that Robert arrived in Victoria in 1854 on the Indian Ocean.

xi

Conn, Ann was born 7 Apr 1830.

Another source gave 7 Apr 1830 as Ann's birth date. 1 Jul may have been a baptism date.

xii

Conn, Thomas was born 11 Mar 1833 in Stevenston.

2

McNaught, Robert † was born 14 Mar 1795 in Stevenston.

I had originally assigned this son to James and Margaret Walker, although the birth year seemed quite late. The realization the James had married twice clarified this to place him as the second child of James and Elizabeth.

Robert son to James McNaught wright died May 5th

3

McNaught, Agnes was born 4 Mar 1797 in Stevenston.
She and John McKechan were married 3 Jul 1815 in Stevenston, Ayr, Scotland.
John was born 1795 in Ayrshire, Scotland.

From the Rev. Landsborough, we find that John was a labourer living on School Well Street, and that he and Agnes had three children in 1819, James, John and Alex, three in 1822, and there were ten people in the houshold in 1837.

From the SCR, the children in this McKechan family, all born in Stevenston, were:

According to the Arshireroots.com Genealogy database, there was another daughter Janet, and according to poorhouse records, another daughter Mary.

The children are presented in more detail online at http://www.ayrshireroots.com/Genealogy/Database/dat16.html#21, and some marriages and grandchildren are available in the poorhouse records sent to me by Linda A. Nordby.

4

McNaught, Jane was born 11 Nov 1799 in Stevenston, Ayrshire, Scotland.
She and William Kirkwood were married 19 Jun 1818 in Stevenston.
William was born 1800.

According to the Rev. Landsborough, William was a weaver living on Boglemart Street (which crosses one end of School Well Street) in 1819, when they had sons James and John, but was "away" for the 1822 list and not listed at all in 1837.

The record of the births of Jane's children list her as Jane McNight, but Landsborough lists her as Jean McNaught, wife of William Kirkwood.

Landsborough lists sons James and John in 1819, but the IGI gives their baptisms as 1819 and 1821. This might be interpreted as baptisms considerably after birth, or possibly earlier sons who died young.

The three children of William and Jane (McNaught) Kirkwood: James, John and William.

i

Kirkwood, James.

ii

Kirkwood, John.

iii

Kirkwood, William.

5

McNaught, Ann was born 12 Mar 1802 in Stevenston.
She and John Beveridge were married 16 Aug 1828.
John was born Aug 1806 in Burnturk, Kettle, Fife, Scotland and died 31 Oct 1861.
He was the son of Henry and Janet (White) Beveridge.

Ann was named as living with her widowed mother in 1819, and presumably was the unnamed child living there in 1822.

John's parents and birth are taken from http://www.keysdog.com/ps05_459.html. That website, of Mark Wakenshaw, also lists Ann and John's children as Janet, James, Henry and Elisabeth, born 1825 through 1838.

John was last censused 1851 and 1861 in Ayrshire, Scotland, and Ann's last census was as a widow in Geneseo, Henry, Illinois.

Mary McNaught
was born 8 Jun 1771 in Stevenston, Ayrshire, Scotland and died 17 Feb 1837 in Stevenston.

Mary was married (1) to John Shedden 17 Jul 1789 in Stevenston.

John Shedden
was born in Ayrshire?, Scotland and died 25 Jan 1796.

Margaret Scott enlightened me as to Mary's first marriage to John Shedden which explains her age of 26 when she married Alexander. After some six years of marriage, John, a mason, died in a coal pit accident. They had three children, James, Margaret and John (Scott, 2002).

This does not completely follow the naming convention, as Mary's parents were Margaret and James, not John. This would be explicable if John Shedden's father were also James, in which case their son John might have been named after Mary's brother John. However, the only likely birth in Stevenston for Mary's first husband is a John Shedden baptised 7 Mar 1765, son to John Shedden and Margaret Easdale [SCR citing SPR; FR85].

Mary's birth and baptism were recorded in the Stevenston Parochial Registers for 1771:

Mary Daw to James McNight wright inStev And Margt King bor June 8th Bap 9th

All of the McNaughts in town seemed to live on School Well, the same one-block street as Mary and Alexander.

The Rev. Landsborough's 1822 list gave only the number of children in each family, two for Alex and Mary, with one lodger in their home. William would have been twenty at that time, and was no longer at home. In the much later list of 1837, Alex was listed as living alone (at age 64), as Mary had died that year, and Hamilton we know had by then emigrated to America. In the 1837 Stevenston Parochial Registers we find:

McNight, Mary, wife to Alexr Brown Stevenston died 17th Feby

The three children of John and Mary (McNaught) Shedden: James, Margaret and John.

1

Shedden, James.
He was married to Ann Dunlop.
Ann was born in Ayrshire?.

Mary McNaught
was born 8 Jun 1771 in Stevenston and died 17 Feb 1837 in Stevenston.

Mary was married (2) to Alexander Brown 17 Jul 1797 in Stevenston.

Alexander Brown
was born 5 Sep 1771 in Saltcoats, Ayrshire, Scotland and died after 1836.
He was the son of William and Kathrine (Hamilton) Brown.

Alexander Brown was a weaver, a trade he passed on to his son Hamilton who practiced it in New York City before he apprenticed to become a watch glass maker. Alexander was born in Saltcoats, but established his family in Stevenston on School Well Street close to the relatives of his wife Mary McNaught.

The record of Alexander Brown's birth in Saltcoats and baptism in Ardrossan Parish in 1771 can be found in both the Stevenston Parochial Registers and the Ardrossan Parochail Registers, although they differ by one day in his birth and in the spelling of his mother's name. In Stevenston:

Wm Brown in Saltcoats and Katharin Hamilton his Spouse had a laufullSon named Alexander, Born the 5th, Baptized the 8th

Mary McNaught's birth, also in 1771 in Stevenston:

Mary Daut to James Mcnight wright inStev And Margt. King bor June 8th Bap 9th

The marriage in 1797 of Alexander and Mary is also recorded:

Alexander Brown and Mary McNaught both in this parishgive in their Names July 12 married 17th

Alexander was listed on the Rev. Landsborough's lists of the residents of Stevenson Parish, the last time, 1 Dec 1836, living alone. (This doesn't gibe with Mary's death record in 1837, see below.) In the first list, he is shown with Mary and their three youngest children, transcribed as “William, Alex, Ham??”. The Rev.'s handwriting was apparently somewhat difficult to read, and whatever he wrote for Hamilton evidently wasn't able to be decyphered. Schoolwell Street, a single block-long, quarter-circle street in the middle of Stevenson, was also the address of the High Kirk, the Established Church of Scotland, and of the Manse, or parsonage, of their pastor the Rev. Landsborough.

Landsborough, pastor in Stevenston, compiled censuses of all of the families in his parish in three different years, 1819, 1822 and 1836 (downloadable transcriptions are available on RootsWeb) and these are an invaluable source of additional information. The Rev. Landsborough, or Dr. David Landsborough, was a polymath in the best tradition of the educated ministers of nineteenth century Great Britain. In addition to being the pastor of the High Kirk of Stevenston from 1811 to 1843, he was a naturalist of some note. He dredged for marine specimens around the islands of Arrand and the Cumbraes in the Firth of Clyde opposite Stevenston, and published "A Popular History of British Seaweeds". Smittina landsborovii, a species of Bryozoans, a colonial type of marine animal similar to but more complex than corals, was named after him. He was one of the participants in the Disruption of 1843 when many ministers who objected to the political constraints of the Established Church broke away to form the Free Church. The Rev. Landsborough left Stevenston High Kirk and set up a Free Church of Scotland in Saltcoats. During the second of two severe outbreaks of cholera in Ayrshire, Landsborough ministered to the dying until he, too, succumbed to the disease in September 1854.

In 1851 the Stevenston Census has an Alex Brown, weaver aged 74, at 96 Townhead353. As our Alexander's age at that time would have been 80, it's not clear whether this is his record with an inaccurate age, or that of someone else with the same name. In any event, we don't know our Alexander's death date.

Mary's birth and baptism were recorded in the Stevenston Parochial Registers for 1771:

Mary Daw to James McNight wright inStev And Margt King bor June 8th Bap 9th

All of the McNaughts in town seemed to live on School Well, the same one-block street as Mary and Alexander.

The Rev. Landsborough's 1822 list gave only the number of children in each family, two for Alex and Mary, with one lodger in their home. William would have been twenty at that time, and was no longer at home. In the much later list of 1837, Alex was listed as living alone (at age 64), as Mary had died that year, and Hamilton we know had by then emigrated to America. In the 1837 Stevenston Parochial Registers we find:

McNight, Mary, wife to Alexr Brown Stevenston died 17th Feby

The six children of Alexander and Mary (McNaught) Brown: Mary, Katharine, William, John, Alexander and Hamilton.

1

Brown, Mary was born 13 May 1798 in Stevenston, Ayrshire, Scotland.
She and John Boyd were married 2 Jul 1819 in Stevenston.

The Stevenston Parochial Registers baptisms for 1798 contains:

Mary Dautt to Alexander Brown weaver in Stevenston and Mary McNaught born May 13th Bap 27th

There were two Mary Browns married in Stevenston in 1819 according to the Vitals Record Index for the British Isles, but the one who married John Boyd on 2 July 1819 had children John, Mary, Margaret and Alexander. (The other Mary Brown marriage abt 1819 to a Robert Mitchel appears only in the IGI.) The naming convention thus identifies her parents as Alexander and Mary (second son, first daughter), and so enables us to choose the more likely Mary. By those conventions, John Boyd's parents would have been John and Margaret, but this combination of names leads to several John Boyds born in Stevenston in the 1790s.

John Boyd and Mary Brown both in this parish gave in their names June 19th Mard July 2d

The four children of John and Mary (Brown) Boyd: John, Mary, Margaret and Alexander.

i

Boyd, John.

The IGI give's John's baptism as 27 February, nine days before his birth on 18 March, so one of the records must be wrong. I've "guessed" that the baptism record is correct, but may have erred here myself.

ii

Boyd, Mary was born 22 Feb 1822 in Stevenston.

iii

Boyd, Margaret was born 17 May 1824 in Stevenston.

iv

Boyd, Alexander was born 22 Jul 1829 in Stevenston.

2

Brown, Katharine was born 26 Mar 1800 in Stevenston and died after 1881.
She and Benjamin Thom were married 20 Aug 1819 in Stevenston.
Benjamin was born 18 Jun 1797 and died 1879.
He was the son of Alexander and Mary (Brown) Thom.

Benjamin Thom and Catherine Brown both in this parish gave in their names Augt 20th

Margaret Scott writes that Benjamin's parents, Alexander Thom and Mary Brown, had at least three other children, William b 20 Feb 1780 in Irvine, Janet and Elizabeth bo 17 Mar 1782 in Stevenston, and "probably some missing".

From the 1841 Stevenston Census, Benjamin was 45 years old and a coalminer/spirit dealer, in 1851 a carter and spirit dealer living at 44 Mason Lodge New Street, and in 1861 living at 36 Boglemart Street. In that year Benjamin was a former carter, but Catherine was still working as a muslin sewer353.

Margaret then notes that the 1871 Stevenston census lists Catherine, a widow aged 71, as a staymaker and handsewer. Also, Catherine made application on the Poor Relief rolls of 1879. She then writes "D. C. pull 1881 for Stevenston and then 1879-1881 for Ardrossan", but I don't know to what this refers353. In any event, this implies that Katharine died no earlier than 1881.

All of the children given here are listed in the SCR for Stevenston. In addition, two sons named James appear as submissions in the IGI, but both records are suspect. One was supposedly born 1827, and the second in 1841, but the latter birth would surely would have been recorded in the parish register as a twin to Alexander born 28 March that year.

I missed the death records in the Stevenston Parochial Registers for the first daughter Margaret and both sons Alexander, but the dates given here are from Margaret Scott citing that source.

The spouses of Mary, Margaret and Elizabeth, and the notes on Marion and Benjamin, are from the Poor Relief Records, Stevenston 1879, sent to me by Linda A. Nordby [Personal Communication, Oct 2002]

Thom, Mary was born 18 Mar 1820 in Stevenston and died 20 Jan 1893 in Ardrossan, Ayrshire, Scotland.
She and John Thomson were married 27 Feb 1841 in Stevenston, Ayrshire, Scotland.

From the censuses over the years in Ardrossan, John was a railway engine driver living at 16 Glasgow Lane and in Bute Place. Their children were Catherine, Margaret, Mary and Benjamin, born 1841 through 1851 in Stevenston353.

ii

Thom, Margaret † was born 18 Sep 1824 in Stevenston and died 1825 in Stevenston.

iii

Thom, Janet was born 17 Dec 1826 in Stevenston.
She and Charles Scott were married 13 Aug 1846 in Stevenston.

The children of Charles and Janet were Benjamin, born about 1850 who married Mary McDiarmin, and Catherine, born about 1852 who married Joseph McHattie.

iv

Thom, Margaret was born 18 Dec 1829 in Stevenston and died 17 Sep 1888 in Stevenston.
She and Isaac Park were married 18 Sep 1847 in Stevenston.
Isaac was born 1823/1824 and died 29 May 1898 in Stevenston.
He was the son of Robert and Margaret (Cunninghame) Park.

From Margaret Scott's notes from the various sources she cites, Isaac was a fireman, labourer and riddesman in the colliery, and Margaret was a hand sewer, dynamite packer and muslin sewer. They lived at 26 Boglemart Street in Stevenston353.

Maira Frew has transcribed Stevenston Monumental Inscriptions and posted them on the web page Ayrshire Roots. There we read: In memory of his wife Margaret Thom who died 17th September 1888 aged 59 years the said Isaac Park died 29th May 1898 aged 74 years.

Park, Mary Thom was born 15 Jan 1867 in Stevenston and died 1939.
She and James Maxwell were married 1 Jan 1887 in Carbon, Clay, Indiana.
James was born 26 Nov 1859 in Kilwinning, Ayrshire, Scotland.
He was the son of Archibald "Archie" and Christina (Stewart) Maxwell.

James and Mary's marriage, according to Jim Paxton [Personal communication, Oct, 2010] took place in Indiana, not in Scotland as I originally had it here. They and their son Archie returned to Scotland, and are in the 1901 Scotland census. Jim writes that Archie returned to Indiana where he died in 1963.

James' parents' names are also from Jim, and found by him on Family Search under "Indiana Marriages 1811-1959".

The three children of James and Mary Thom (Park) Maxwell: Archie, Margaret Thom and Janet.

i

Maxwell, Archie was born 3 Dec 1887 in Carbon and died Sep 1963 in Indiana.

ii

Maxwell, Margaret Thom was born 2 Mar 1890 and died 16 Jun 1966.
She and James Wales were married 6 May 1916.

A son of James and Margaret Thom (Maxwell) Wales: Abraham.

1

Wales, Abraham was born 25 Sep 1916 and died 28 Apr 1991.
He and Margaret Stark were married 6 Jun 1941.
Margaret was born 1911/1912.

A daughter of Abraham and Margaret (Stark) Wales: Margaret.

i

Wales, Margaret was born 19 Apr xxxx.
She and Bryan Scott were married 14 Aug 1965.

iii

Maxwell, Janet.
She was married to Charles Paxton.

Charles and Janet are the grandparents of Jim Paxton, by correspondant of Oct, 2010, regarding the Maxwell and Thom families.

9

Park, John was born 27 Mar 1869 in Stevenston, Ayrshire, Scotland.

v

Thom, Marion was born 8 Apr 1832 in Stevenston.
She and Robert Thomson were married 5 Dec 1850 in Ayrshire.

Marion and Robert, a journeyman blacksmith in 1855, lived at 5 Glasgow Lane, Ardrossan. They had one child, Robert, born 15 Nov 1855353. As of 1879, Marion was living in America [Poor Relief Record, Stevenston, 731].

vi

Thom, Alexander † was born 11 Jun 1834 in Stevenston, Ayrshire, Scotland and died 26 Aug 1836 in Stevenston.

vii

Thom, Elizabeth was born 20 Jul 1836 in Stevenston.
She and Archibald Tait were married 24 Mar 1854 in Stevenston.
Archibald was born 1831/1832 and died 6 May 1874 in Stevenston.
He was the son of William and Georgina (Brown) Tait.

Elizabeth and Archibald lived at 13 Harbour Row, Ardrossan. Their eleven children were Georgina Brown, William, Catherine, Benjamin, Mary, Elizabeth, Margaret, Archiblad, Benjamin, James and John, born 1854 through 1877353.

viii

Thom, Benjamin was born 4 Jan 1839 in Stevenston.
He and Elizabeth Jeffrey were married 16 Aug 1861 in Stevenston, Ayr, Scotland.
Elizabeth was born 18 Jan 1840 in Stevenston.
She was the daughter of Joseph and Janet (Love) Jeffrey.

In 1861 Benjamin was a ship's engineer residing in Greenock, and an engine fitter at 59 Main St. in Cambusnethan, Lanark in 1881353. In 1879 was he listed as an engineer [Poor Relief Record, Stevenston, 731].

Benjamin and Elizabeth's children were Benjamin, Joseph, Benjamin, david Jeffrey, William J. and Janet, born 1861 through 1880. The first four were born in Stevenston, the last two in Kilmarnock and at Newmains, Glasgow353.

ix

Thom, Alexander † was born 28 Mar 1841 in Stevenston, Ayrshire, Scotland and died 13 Feb 1842 in Stevenston.

3

Brown, William was born 22 May 1802 in Stevenston.

From the Stevenston Parochial Registers for 1802:

William son Alexander Brown weaver in Stevenston and Mary McNaught born May 22th Bap 29

There were two William Browns married in Stevenston, and five in the closely neighboring Ardrossan Parish, who were of an age to be this William. However, the two in Stevenston each had a single daughter's birth in the IGI, and the other five had no children recorded at all, so naming patterns aren't available to provide distinquishing clues.

The two couples in Stevenston were William Brown and Mary McBride married about 1823 [IGI], who had a daughter Barbara, and William Brown and Mary Harvie who married 3 Oct 1824 [SPR FR619], with a daughter Catharine.

This William could, of course, have died young, married out of the parish, or remained a bachelor all of his life. We don't know. For that matter, he could have emigrated with his brother Hamilton, but a search for him over here hasn't been carried out. There were more than a few William Browns in New York City. Hamilton named his third son William, in accordance with the naming conventions used so consistently in this lineage, so I don't believe his brother died young.

4

Brown, John was born about Jun 1803 in Stevenston?, Ayrshire, Scotland.
He and Barbary Levi were married 1 Apr 1831 in Dutch Reformed Church, Greenwich Village, New York City.

John was not found in the Stevenston Parochial Registers, either because his baptism wasn't recorded or because I simply missed it when scanning the Register images. His existence is proved by a New York State census taken 30 Jun 1855 in Brooklyn, Kings County, New York. There he appears as the brother (explicitly so stated) of Hamilton Brown, his youngest brother and our direct ancestor. Also in the household at that time were Hamilton's second wife Charlotte Robertson, his daughter Jane (also our direct ancestor) by his first wife Mary Biggert, and the four children of his and Charlotte's.

Both Hamilton and John's occupations were listed as "Watch Me…", the latter word a scribbled abbreviation probably for mechanic, as that term was used to mean "maker" in those days. Also, the family, including John, was recorded as having lived in Brooklyn for three years, which corresponds to other records (see below) indicating that Hamilton moved from Manhattan in 1852. This strongly suggests the possibility that John had been living - and working - with his younger brother in Manhattan before that move, although no records have been found to support that possibility.

John was recorded in the census as born in Scotland and 62 years of age, evidently a decadal error, as the implied birth year would have been four or five years before his parents' marriage. I have assumed here that the census taker misheard 52 as 62, which implies a more reasonable birth year of 1802/1803. That puts him in the middle of his siblings, and leaves William as the eldest son, named after his grandfather in the usual Scottish naming convention. But the dates are unusually closely spaced: his brother William having been born 22 May 1802 and Alexander 6 Jul 1804. That leads me to estimate John's birth as having been about June 1803.

John has few records in New York City, but those are convincingly clear as belonging to Hamilton's brother. John Brown and Barbary Levy were married 1 Apr 1831 in the Dutch Reformed Church in Greenwich Village, as were Hamilton and Mary Biggert two years later on 22 Apr 1833. Then, over the next eight years, John and Barbary had four children baptised in that church, Alexander, Barbary, Elizabeth and John. The eldest son was named after his grandfather, the conventional pattern once again. Each one of those four records spelled the mother's name as Barbary, so that was not a misprint, but probably an informal usage for Barbara.

A rather exhaustive search online failed to find any other records of John and Barbary and their children. The difficulty is, however, that the name John Brown is somewhat widespread over the country, and although Barbary is somewhat rare, Barbara is again a very common name.

A search across the U. S. for Barbary Levi of any age also turned up no records ascribable to her other than her marriage and childrens' births in New York City. Similarly, a search for Barbary Delevie/de Levie/de Levy and similar variations was unsuccessful.

The four children of John and Barbary (Levi) Brown: Alexander, Barbary, Elizabeth and John.

i

Brown, Alexander was born 10 Mar 1832 in New York City, New York, New York and baptized 6 Apr 1832 in the Dutch Reformed Church, Greenwich Village, New York City.

ii

Brown, Barbary was born 15 Jun 1834 in New York City, New York, New York and baptized 11 Jul 1834 in the Dutch Reformed Church, Greenwich Village, New York City.

iii

Brown, Elizabeth was born 13 Oct 1836 in New York City, New York, New York and baptized 6 Jan 1837 in the Dutch Reformed Church, Greenwich Village, New York City.

iv

Brown, John was born 18 Feb 1839 in New York City, New York, New York and baptized 12 Apr 1839 in the Dutch Reformed Church, Greenwich Village, New York City.

5

Brown, Alexander was born 6 Jul 1804 in Stevenston, Ayrshire, Scotland.
He and Grace Fulton were married 25 Apr 1825 in Stevenston, Ayrshire, Scotland.
Grace was born 1801 in Ayrshire, Scotland.

From the Stevenston Parochial Registers for 1804:

Alexander son to Alexander weaver in Stevenstoun and Mary McNaught born July 6 Baptised at Ardro?san

but this baptism doesn't appear in the Ardrossan Parochial Registers for some reason.

From the 1825 Stevenston Parochial Registers:

Alexander Brown and Grace Fulton both in this parish of L___ster gave in their names April 2

No marriages were being recorded at this time in the Stevenston Parochial Registers, just proclamations of banns, but Margaret Scott has a marriage date of 25 April from some unrecorded source, and the same day appears in two submitted records of the IGI.

Alex and Grace, both "Cotton HLW", were living at 1841 South Burnside in 1841 with Jean, Mary, Alex and Hamilton, and in 1861 were at 93 Boglemart Street with their daughter Grace and granddaughter Janet, 5 years old. Alexander Barron of Inverness, Scotland, tells me [Personal Communication, 10 Nov 2006] that HLW means Hand Loom Weavers. Alexander Brown was listed that year as a grocer and spirit dealer353.

These are submitted records, not a primary source extraction, so the marriage date is probably someone's guess. A correspondant, Josephine Pike of Australia, is searching for the parents of a Margaret Brown/Broun who married a James Fullton/Fulton in Ardrossan in 1783 (a second marriage for both), and that could well be this same couple. These births are some fifty years before that of Grace Fulton, and so could be her grandparents in so far as date and location are appropriate. Obviously, however, no connection can be assumed based on only that information.

The first son and second daughter of Alexander and Grace were Alexander and Mary, matching his parents, and in addition they named a daughter Hamilton, which just about clinches this identification. Alexander and Grace appear in the Rev. Landsborough's 1837 census with seven children in the household. We only know the names of six children born by that date, and two of those had died by that time, so who all of these children were we don't know.

The births of Jean, Mary and Robert (the latter born 1832), with only birth years specified, are from submitted records to the IGI and are given that same way by Margaret Scott. In addition, a second Robert born 1840 appears in the IGI, but was not recorded in the 1841 census, so most likely is a reference to the first Robert with an erroneous birth year. There is a record of a Robert Brown who married Helen Wallace Arnot 3 Mar 1854 in Stevenston who Margaret Scott believes to be the son of Alexander and Grace born 1832. But the two death records "Alexr Brown's infant child died March 29th" in 1831 and "Alexr Brown's child in Stevenston died Sept 23rd" in 1834 can only refer to Margaret and that Robert. On the other hand, a Robert born in 1840 can hardly be the one who married in 1854. At this time, I'm rejecting the second Robert and the 1854 marriage as not pertaining to this family.

Note that three of the children died young (marked with the symbol †).

Brown, Jean Fulton was born 1822/1826 in Stevenston and died 20 Jun 1885 in Townshead Street, Stevenston, Ayrshire, Scotland.
She and David Frew were married 10 Jun 1843 in Stevenston, Ayrshire, Scotland.
David was born 13 Feb 1820 in Stevenston, Ayrshire, Scotland and died 3 Jun 1906 in Boglemart, Stevenston, Ayrshire, Scotland.
He was the son of Robert and Elizabeth (Lindsay) Frew.

The name of Jean's husband was given to me by Alexander Barron [Personal communication, 10 Nov 2006], a descendant of David and Jean. It was confirmed later (2007) from an extensive Frew ancestral document supplied to me by Margaret Scott.

Jean and David had eight children, Elizabeth, Alexander, Grace †, Robert †, David, Jane, Margaret † and Margaret † Frew, born about 1845 through 1865353.

ii

Brown, Mary was born 1826/1827 in Stevenston.

This record, Alexr Brown's child in Stevenston died Sept 23rd [From the 1834 Stevenston Parochial Registers] probably refers to this daughter Mary, as there is no record of any other child born before this date who does not have later marriage records. I had previously assigned this death to her brother Robert, but Gillian Mauchan pointed out to me [Personal Communication, July, 2010] that Robert survived, was married, and died in 1910.

iii

Brown, Alexander Ingram was born 23 Jan 1828 in Stevenston and died about 1875 in Stevenston.
He and Flora Stewart were married 22 Nov 1848 in Stevenston, Ayr, Scotland.
Flora was born 1830/1836 in Kilmorie, Arran, Scotland and died 30 May 1899 in Ardrossan, Ayrshire, Scotland.

The 1828 record in the Stevenston Parochial Archives for this son of Alexander and Grace is interesting in that the name was originally entered as Ingram, and then the abbreviation "Alexr" was written in the space above. It's not possible of course to determine when the addition was made, but as near as one can tell it's in the same handwriting, not a modern one. The Index of Baptisms appearing on the microfilm of the Register reads "Alexander Ingram". The day of the baptism is missing because of the worn edge o the register page:

In 1861 Alexander Brown, 32, was a potato merchant at 6 Main Street in Stevenston with his wife and three daughters. By 1876 Flora was a widow, with a two year old Jane in her household, her daughters being away. On November 13th of that year Flora was certified insane and sent to an asylum, but was back in her own home a year later. She moved in 1877 to Ardrossan and probably died in an asylum353.

Alexander Ingram and Flora's children were Grace b 1853, Alexander b 1855, Margaret b 1859, Janet b 1860, Alexander Ingram b 1866, Mary Stewart b 1869, and possibly also Flora b 1851/52 and Jessie b 1860 who were in their household in 1861 but not listed as children by Margaret353.

iv

Brown, Margaret † was born 12 Jan 1830 in Stevenston, Ayrshire, Scotland and died 29 Mar 1831 in Stevenston.

There is a death record in the 1831 Stevenston Parochial Registers: Alexr Brown's infant child died March 29th, and that is most likely for Margaret.

v

Brown, Robert was born 1832 in Stevenston and died 26 Sep 1910 in Androssan, Ayrshire, Scotland.
He and Helen Wallace Arnott were married 19 Feb 1854 in Ardrossan, Ayrshire, Scotland.
Helen Wallace was born 1834 in Saltcoats, Ayrshire, Scotland.
She was the daughter of William and Ann (Wallace) Arnott.

Gillian Mauchan is a 3rd-gr-grandchild of this Robert and his wife Ann Wallace by their daughter Grace Fulton Brown who married Andrew Mauchan. She has kindly provided me with the results of her research on this family in the form of a beautifully documented Register Report.

Robert was born in Stevenston, the son of a weaver. He started out as a weaver but with the collapse of the cotton industry changed jobs and became a gardener. He appears to have had steady employment as he lived in the same house for the rest of his life.

Gillian's research reports that they had nine children: Alexander, William, Robert Fulton, Ann Wallace, John, Robert Fulton, Gardner, Helen W. and Grace Fulton Brown born through 1854 through 1875 in Stevenston (the first three) and Ardrossan.

vi

Brown, Hamilton was born 19 Aug 1836 in Stevenston, Ayrshire, Scotland.
She was married (1) to Edward Stevenson 12 Feb 1858 in Stevenston.
Edward died before 1875.
She was married (2) to Cowan Gibson 12 Feb 1873 in Scotland.
Cowan was born 1823/1824 in Stevenston and died before 1891.
He was the son of Robert and Catherine (Cowan) Gibson.

Although it had been corrected indexed in the SCR, until I inspected the 1836 entry itself in the Stevenston Parochial Registers I had missed the point that this Hamilton was a daughter!

The Index of Baptisms also appearing on the microfilm of the Register reads "Hamilton (Fem)", so someone else felt this somewhat rare usage needed to be flagged.

Hamilton's children by Edward Stevenson were Robert, Sarah, Grace, Alexander, Sarah, Jane and John, according to one of my correspondants. Margaret Scott says that the 1871 census described Edward as a manufacturer of shawls, and listed their children at home as Grace, Alexander, Sarah and Jane Stevenson. I have not read the Stevenston Parochial Registers for these two families of Hamilton, and so must rely on the IGI for names and birth dates, as shown below. Considering those dates, it seems unlikely (but not impossible) that Grace and Robert were children in the family, even though Grace was living there in 1871.

The record in the IGI for the marriage of Cowan Gibson and Hamilton Brown 12 Feb 1873 seems right for the date (considering her children's birth dates), but it lists the place as High Church, Glasgow, Lanark, Scotland. That seems such and out-of-place place, that I only mention it here but don't accept it without seeing the original record. Two such couples with these names, however, being married about the same time seems highly unlikely.

I also had from some source (now lost) that Hamilton's children by Cowan were Hugh, Mary and Martha. This doesn't accord completely with the births of Margaret and Martha, as listed below from the IGI, although the seven years between the births does leave time for two children whose births were not registered. The birth for Martha, incidently, has her mother listed as Hamilton Brown Stevenson, thus testifying to Hamilton's two marriages.

The seven children of Edward and Hamilton (Brown) Stevenson: Sarah †, Sarah †, Alexander, Sarah, Jane, John † and John.